Milk Thistle: Nature’s Guardian of Liver

Milk Thistle: Nature’s Guardian of Liver

Silybum marianum, commonly known as milk thistle, belongs to the Asteraceae family. It is an adaptive crop with low nutritional requirements, drought and extreme temperature resistance. The milk thistle seeds possess 20-30% lipids, 20-30% proteins and 0.63% sterols1. Silymarin is the most studied bioactive compound responsible for milk thistle's therapeutics and pharmacological properties. Silymarin is a mixture of several compounds with different degrees of biological activity (Fig 1.)1,2. Silybin is the most active and abundant (70%) phytochemical present in milk thistle, and the FDA has approved it for use as a phytomedicine to treat and manage liver diseases1.

Fig 1. Chemical structure of major components of silymarin

Milk thistle has several biological properties, including anti-diabetic, anti-obesity, hepatoprotective, anti-oxidant, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory3,4. In this article, we will focus on the hepatoprotective activity of milk thistle extract.

Silybin (silymarin) present in milk thistle extract is reported to be effective in several liver diseases, including viral hepatitis, alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases, liver fibrosis and even hepatocellular carcinoma5. A study reported that silymarin exerts its anti-fibrotic effect via reduced Ly6Chi monocyte infiltration and decreased TNF-α, TGF-β1 and MCP-1 expression6. A similar study reported that silymarin administration exerts a hepatoprotective effect in ICR mice, as indicated by reduced levels of TIMP-1, TIMP-2, MMP-2, MMP-13, TGF-β1, etc.7. Silymarin is reported to inhibit the growth of the hepatitis C virus (HCV). A study reported that silymarin inhibited the entry of virus particles in Huh7 cells. Additionally, silymarin blocked intercellular HCV spread. Moreover, silymarin treatment results in reduced virion production in culture supernatant8.

In addition to in vitro and in vivo studies, there are various clinical studies on the hepatoprotective and anti-hepatitis effects of silymarin. In a clinical study involving 8447 patients with Hepatitis B virus-related liver cirrhosis, it was observed that silymarin and antiviral treatment showed a synergistic effect, resulting in decreased mortality9. Another 12-month, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial studied the effect of silymarin in patients presented with trauma-induced liver injury. Silymarin supplementation significantly reduced serum malondialdehyde levels and increased total antioxidant capacity10.

Based on the above research, it can be concluded that milk thistle offers significant hepatoprotective effects. Thus, milk thistle supplementation can naturally support liver function.

References

  1. Marceddu, R.; Dinolfo, L.; Carrubba, A.; Sarno, M.; Di Miceli, G. Milk Thistle (Silybum Marianum L.) as a Novel Multipurpose Crop for Agriculture in Marginal Environments: A Review. Agronomy. MDPI March 1, 2022. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12030729.
  2. Badi, N. H. A Review on Pharmacological, Cultivation and Biotechnology Aspects of Milk Thistle (Silybum Marianum (L.) Gaertn.); 2013; Vol. 12. www.SID.ir.
  3. Badi, N. H. A Review on Pharmacological, Cultivation and Biotechnology Aspects of Milk Thistle (Silybum Marianum (L.) Gaertn.); 2013; Vol. 12. www.SID.ir.
  4. Kazazis, C. E.; Evangelopoulos, A. A.; Kollas, A.; Vallianou, N. G. The Therapeutic Potential of Milk Thistle in Diabetes. Review of Diabetic Studies. Society for Biomedical Diabetes Research 2014, pp 167–174. https://doi.org/10.1900/RDS.2014.11.167.
  5. Federico, A.; Dallio, M.; Loguercio, C. Silymarin/Silybin and Chronic Liver Disease: A Marriage of Many Years. Molecules. MDPI AG February 1, 2017. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules22020191.
  6. Zhao, X.-A.; Chen, G.-M.; Liu, Y.; Chen, Y.-X.; Wu, H.-Y.; Chen, J.; Xiong, Y.-L.; Tian, C.; Wang, G.-Y.; Jia, B.; Xia, J.; Wang, J.; Yan, X.-M.; Zhang, Z.-P.; Huang, R.; Wu, C. Inhibitory Effect of Silymarin on CCl 4-Induced Liver Fibrosis by Reducing Ly6C Hi Monocytes Infiltration; 2017; Vol. 10. www.ijcep.com/.
  7. Chen, I. S.; Chen, Y. C.; Chou, C. H.; Chuang, R. F.; Sheen, L. Y.; Chiu, C. H. Hepatoprotection of Silymarin against Thioacetamide-Induced Chronic Liver Fibrosis. J Sci Food Agric 2012, 92 (7), 1441–1447. https://doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.4723.
  8. Wagoner, J.; Negash, A.; Kane, O. J.; Martinez, L. E.; Nahmias, Y.; Bourne, N.; Owen, D. M.; Grove, J.; Brimacombe, C.; McKeating, J. A.; Pécheur, E. I.; Graf, T. N.; Oberlies, N. H.; Lohmann, V.; Cao, F.; Tavis, J. E.; Polyak, S. J. Multiple Effects of Silymarin on the Hepatitis C Virus Lifecycle. Hepatology 2010, 51 (6), 1912–1921. https://doi.org/10.1002/hep.23587.
  9. Huang, C. H.; Wu, V. C. C.; Wang, C. L.; Wu, C. L.; Huang, Y. T.; Chang, S. H. Silymarin Synergizes with Antiviral Therapy in Hepatitis B Virus-Related Liver Cirrhosis: A Propensity Score Matching Multi-Institutional Study. Int J Mol Sci 2024, 25 (6). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25063088.
  10. Mirzaei, E.; Sabetian, G.; Masjedi, M.; Heidari, R.; Mirjalili, M.; Dehghanian, A.; Vazin, A. The Effect of Silymarin on Liver Enzymes and Antioxidant Status in Trauma Patients in the Intensive Care Unit: A Randomized Double Blinded Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial. Clin Exp Hepatol 2021, 7 (2), 149–155. https://doi.org/10.5114/ceh.2021.107067.
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Dr. Sunny Gupta, Ph.D. Cancer Biology

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Dr. Sunny is an accomplished researcher with expertise in natural products and their therapeutic applications. He has extensive experience in designing and executing assays for the preclinical testing of natural products, both in vitro and in vivo, with a focus on diseases such as cancer and dengue. Sunny’s research integrates traditional natural compounds (Ayurveda) with modern scientific approaches to develop and validate affordable and sustainable treatments. He holds an M.Tech in Biotechnology from Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology, Kolkata, and a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India.